France reinforces controls at Spanish border after mass migrant arrivals in Ceuta - EUROPE SAYS
Ilayda Cakirtekin31 July 2026•Update: 31 July 2026French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez announced Friday that France would strengthen border checks with Spain following recent mass migrant arrivals at. . .
Ilayda Cakirtekin31 July 2026•Update: 31 July 2026French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez announced Friday that France would strengthen border checks with Spain following recent mass migrant arrivals at Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta. “In response to the situation observed in the enclave of Ceuta, I instructed, as early as last night, that controls at the Spanish border be reinforced without delay,” Nunez wrote on US social media platform X. Nunez also said he was activating a rapid border intervention force to carry out in-depth checks. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also announced late Thursday that Italy was prepared to take measures to defend its borders, including suspending the Schengen agreement with Spain. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani made similar remarks, calling for Spain to be suspended from the Schengen free-movement zone. Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares later condemned Tajani’s remarks and said Italy’s ambassador had been summoned. The announcements came as Spain’s Ceuta enclave has seen a surge in irregular migrant arrivals from Morocco in recent days. Initial estimates from security forces showed that more than 40,000 migrants had entered Ceuta from Morocco in recent days, most of them on Thursday, according to Spanish daily El Pais. The death toll linked to the mass arrivals stood at 19 as of early Friday. Hundreds of migrants who entered Ceuta irregularly in recent hours reportedly began returning to Morocco through the same crossing point they had used to enter. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the government was mobilizing all available resources in response to the situation. Tags:migrantSiteKeywords